"I Don't Know Why They Attacked Our Village": Persecution of Christians, February 2019

In this mailing: - Raymond Ibrahim: "I Don't Know Why They Attacked Our Village": Persecution of Christians, February 2019 - Amir Taheri: Europe's Three Concerns About Iran [] ["I Don't Know Why They Attacked Our Village": Persecution of Christians, February 2019]( by Raymond Ibrahim • May 12, 2019 at 5:00 am [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [Addthis]( [Send]( [Print]( - During just the first two weeks of February, "[a]t least 10 incidents of vandalism and desecration of Catholic churches have been reported in France." — Catholicherald.co.uk, February 15, 2019; France. - "The attack was so terrible that Haroon's kidney was cut into two pieces" from the stabbings....After he was rushed to hospital, "doctors were forced to remove his kidney." As is common in such cases, police and local authorities tried to pressure the family not to press charges against the Muslim youths.... — Persecution.org; International Christian Concern; February 21, 2019; Pakistan. - "A group of kidnappers meets in a mosque to discuss potential victims. They keep a close eye on Christians' houses and monitor everything that's going on. On that basis, they weave a spider's web around [the girls].... I remember a Coptic Christian girl from a rich, well-known family in Minya. She was kidnapped by five Muslim men. They held her in a house, stripped her and filmed her naked. In the video, one of them also undressed. They threatened to make the video public if the girl wouldn't marry him.... The kidnappers receive large amounts of money. Police can help them in different ways, and when they do, they might also receive a part of the financial reward the kidnappers are paid by the Islamisation organisations." — Testimony by "G", Persecution.org, February 19, 2019, Egypt. February witnessed a significant increase of state-sanctioned persecution of Christians in Iran. In the city of Rasht (pictured), nine Christians were arrested. One of them, a pastor who took over after his predecessor was arrested, was himself arrested on February 10 during church service. (Image source: Ahmadrizo/Wikimedia Commons) Massacres of Christians Nigeria: A number of fatal Islamic terror attacks targeting Christians occurred throughout February: [Continue Reading Article]( [] [Europe's Three Concerns About Iran]( by Amir Taheri • May 12, 2019 at 4:00 am [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [Addthis]( [Send]( [Print]( - The question is: who will take the reins in Iran and make sure that the vast country does not morph into yet another "ungoverned territory" in the heart of the Middle East? - I think the question is designed to dodge the issue of confronting a rogue regime that has provoked the current crisis. Iran has an old and well-established bureaucracy, dating back to the 16th century, and capable of operating within a strong culture of governance. Despite the serious damage done to state structures by the mullahs and their acolytes, the reservoir of experience and talent available is vast enough to ensure governance even on autopilot. - The mullahs are playing with fire and, "He who plays with fire risks being burned!" If the regime of the Islamic Republic of Iran collapses, who will take the reins and make sure that the vast country does not morph into yet another "ungoverned territory" in the heart of the Middle East? Pictured: Iran's Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei (left) and President Hassan Rouhani. (Image source: khamenei.ir) Talking to European think-tankers and policymakers in recent weeks, one gets the impression that, seen from Europe, Iran is a recurring nightmare that everyone wishes would go away. A couple of years ago, many in Europe believed that it had faded into oblivion. Now, however, the nightmare is back with a vengeance, with drums of war beating in the background. The truth is that, apart from wishing it would go away, the European Union has never had a coherent policy for dealing with the nightmare. Eight years of President Barack Obama's dancing around the Iran issue enabled the Europeans to postpone serious analysis of the situation in the Islamic Republic. [Continue Reading Article]( [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [RSS]( [Donate]( Copyright © Gatestone Institute, All rights reserved. You are subscribed to this list as {EMAIL} You can change how you receive these emails: [Update your subscription preferences]( or [Unsubscribe from this list]( [Gatestone Institute]( 14 East 60 St., Suite 705, New York, NY 10022